Spencer Elden, known in popular culture as a baby swimming off the cover of Nirvana's iconic "Nevermind" album, is suing the band for child pornography and sexual exploitation.
Elden, now 30, claims that his famous picture swimming as a naked baby in a pool, taken by a photographer named Kirk Woodell, is in fact child pornography, and he could not agree to its use.
Elden filed the lawsuit against photographer Woodel, all the band members alive, as well as against the estate of the late Nirvana lead singer Kurt Cobain and his widow singer Courtney Love.
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The lawsuit also mentions the band's art director, Robert Fisher, along with Heather Perry and producer Guy Ozeri, who are partially managing Cobain's estate.
Elden also listed the record companies on which the album was released as taking part in the blame, due to the distribution of the photo.
Among others, the companies Warner Records, UMG and Geffen Records are being sued.
Elden is claiming $ 150,000 from each of the defendants, along with the addition of tort law.
According to the indictment, Nirvana "sexually exploited for commercial purposes" Elden when he was four months old.
"Fisher created an image that focuses on Spencer's hidden organs to intensify the shocking element the image created. Spencer's name and true identity forever involve the commercial sexual exploitation he experienced as a minor, which has been distributed and sold worldwide since he was a baby to this day."
Courtney Love and the remaining members of the band Nirvana, Dave Grohl and Chris Novoslik, have not yet commented.
It should be noted that the album cover has been a source of much anger for Elden for a long time.
In 2016, when the album turned 25, he was interviewed by Time magazine, where he expressed frustration that he did not make money from using his character.
In the article he said that he tried to sue Geffen Records but "failed".
Alongside this, in the photoshoot in which he took part, he recreated his famous picture - this time as an adult.
"Nevermind" is considered one of the most important albums in the history of rock and has sold over 30 million copies worldwide.
